Corned-beef press.



No. 786,438. PATENTBD APR. 4, 1905.

R. G. HIEBBR.

GOENED BEEF PRESS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 20, 1904.

Patented April 4, 1905.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

REYNOLDS C. HIEBER, OFv CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CORNED-BEEF PRESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N o. 786,438, dated April 4, 1905.

i Application filed July 20, 1904. Serial No. 217,413.

T0 @ZZ whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, REYNOLDS C. I-IIEBER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Corned-Beef Presses, of which the following is a speciiication.

This invention relates to a construction of press especially adapted for compacting corned beef, but which can be used for other articles where it is desirable or necessary to have retained in the finished product the juices, Havor, and essential elements of the product.

The objects of the invention are to construct a simple, eficient, and reliable press by which the corned beef or other article can be compressed to any extent desired, to enable the corned beef to be pressed into shape and retain therein the juices, flavor, and essential elements of the beef and without any waste in the pressing, to enable the pressed resultant to be quickly and readily removed from the press without any liability of breakingin two or becoming disintegrated in the act of removal, and to improve generally the construction and arrangement of the several elements which enter into the press as a whole.

The invention consists in the features of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical sectional elevation of the press of the invention; Fig. 2, a horizontal section taken on line 2 2 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrow with the lifter removed, and Fig. 3 an edge view of the lifter.

The box or case A, in which the corned beef is placed to be compressed into shape, can be made of sheet metal or other suitable material, having four side walls a and a bottom a and open at the top. The dimensions as regards length, width, and depth can be varied to suit the size of package desired, and the box or case can be square in cross-section, as shown, or can be of greater length than width or such other shape as may be desired. The construction shown has on each side wall a strap B, of metal or other suitable material, for stiifening the walls, and,

as shown, the strap has a vertical section Z) extending below the bottom of the box or case, and at the limit of the vertical section the strap is given an upward incline, forming a leg or foot b, from which the strap extends in a section b2, underneath the bottom of the box or case. The feet b for each side of the box or case furnish a support for resting the box or case on a table or other place of use, and the vertical sections Z furnish a stiffening to resist outward pressure in compressing the corned beef or other material or article, and the horizontal portions b2 furnish'a stiffening to resist the downward pressure 1n compressing the corned beef or other material or article, so that the box or case can be made of light material and still have the necessary rigidity and strength for the compression of the material or article contained therein. As shown, additional stiifening for the top of the box or case is furnished by a metal strap B, which encircles the top of the box or case on all sides, and this strap and the straps B, as shown, are secured to the walls of the box or case by means of rivets b3, but could be secured by any other suitable means.

The pressed corned beef after it has been compacted is to be removed from the box or case in such manner as to retain its compressed condition without breaking up or disintegrating in the removal from the box or case. The device of the present invention for removing the pressed corned beef or other material or article is a lifter C, made of metal or other suitable material and having four arms c, which in the arrangement shown are of equal length and united at the center, so that the top of the several arms will be in the same plane. The sides and end of each arm in the arrangement shown each have a beveled face c', and the bottom c of the box or case has formed therein a depression consisting of four sections c2, one section for each arm c of the lifter, and this depression is of a depth corresponding to the thickness of the arms of the lifter, so that when the arms c are in the depression c2 the upper face of the lifter-arms will be in a level plane with the upper or inner face of the bottom a of the box 1 co or case, presenting a smooth face to engage the corned beef, so that the nished product will have a smooth surface on the bottom and sides.

The lifter is carried by a stem D, on which the lifter is secured in a fixed relation. This stem is of sufficient length to extend above and below the top and bottom of the box or case, and one end of the stem in the arrangement shown has an exterior screw-thread al and the other end has an exterior screwthread d@ and, as shown, the lifter C is connected with the stem by the screw-thread d on the lower end of the stem, so that it may be adjusted in its relative position to the ends of the stem. The screw-thread cl of the stem D receives a wing-nut E, having a head e with an interior scre\ 7-thread and wings c in the arrangement shown; but other forms of wing-nuts or clamping-nuts can be used. The upper thread d receives a lever F, having a head f with an interior screw-thread, and arms or barsj'/ by means of which the lever F as a whole can be turned to perform the compressing operation. The lower end of the stem D extends through the bottom c of the box or case, and the upper end extends through a removable presser-head G, which, as shown, is made of two pieces of metal or other suitable material, but could be a single piece, if so desired. This head corresponds in shape to the shape of the box or case in cross-section and ts within the space of the box or case, and against its upper face in use the head of the lever F abuts, so that by turning the lever F the presser-head will be forced inward and compress the corned beef or other material or article within the box or case between the presser-head and the bottom of the box or case.

In use the stem D, with the lifter C, is entered into the box or case for the arms of the lifter to rest in the depression in the bottom of the box or case and for the lower end of the stem to project through the bottom of the box or case, and on this projecting lower end is screwed the wing-nut E or other clamping means, so as to draw the lifter closely into the depression therefor and present a level face for the bottom of the box and the lifter. The corned beef is filled into the box or case to the amount required, after which the presser-head is placed in position on the stem D and the lever-nutf threaded onto the end of the stein D and the lever F turned to force the presser-head inward and compress the corned beef within the box or case, the presser-head being forced inward to an extent sufficient for the compression of the cooked corned beef to the condition desired. After the corned beef has cooled the wing-nut E or other clamping means is withdrawn from the lower end of the stein D, when the compressed meat can be removed from the box or case by lifting on the arms of the lever F, the lifter C serving to hold the pressed beef at the bottom and the presserhead holding it at the top while being removed, though, if desired, the presser-head can be taken off by removing the lever-nut, in which case the pressed beef will be raised out of the box or case by the lifter. When the pressed beef is entirely removed from the box or case, the stem can be withdrawn, removing with it the lifter, it being understood that to remove the stem and lifter the lever F is to be removed from the stem.

The box or case is tight on all sides, with the result that when the presser-head is forced inward none of the -juice or parts of the corned beef can escape, but all of the elements of the meat must remain in the finished product. The juice forced out by the advance of the presser-head, if sufficient in quantity to rise above the head, will when the meat is fully compressed and during the cooling thereof flow back of its own accord into and permeate through the meat. The meat is compressed quickly, it only being necessary to advance the lever F to force the presser-head inwardly, and such advance of the presser-head compresses the meat between the head and the bottom of the box or case and the side walls of the box or case. The meat after it has been compressed and cooled can be quickly taken out, it only being necessary to remove the wing-nut E or other clamping means from the lower end of the rod or stem D, when by lifting on the stem the meat will be raised out of the box or case through the action of the lifter C, which follows the stem. The withdrawal of the meat from the box or case is attained without any great liability of breaking down or disintegrating the mass, as the lifter serves to support the mass from the bottom and furnishes a direct contact in raising the meat out of the box or case. The stem, with the lifter thereon, can be inserted in place when the wing-nut E or other clamping means is removed from the lower end of the stem, and when in place the stem and lifter are held in position by engaging the wingnut or other clamping means on the lower end of the stem, so that the stem and lifter can be easily inserted for use and can be readily withdrawn to raise the packed or pressed meat out of the box or case. The presser-head can be advanced to any extent desired, so as to give any required compression to the meat, and in compressing the meat there will be no waste of the juices or other elements, the meat retaining therein when in the shape of the finished product all the juices and elements belonging thereto.

The press is primarily designed for use in compressing corned beef; but it can be used for compressing other kinds of meat, meatloaf, headcheese, and potted meats generally, and while the press is primarily designed for IIO use with meats it can be used in compressing other articles and materials where it is desirable or necessary to have retained in the nished product the juices of the articles or materials.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a corned-b'eef press, the combination of a box' having joined side walls and bottom and open at the top with a depression in the bottom, having a perforation therethrough, a lifter formed to enter the depression in the bottom of the box, a stem carrying the lifter and passing through the perforation, a clamp for the lower end of the stem, alever-nut for the upper end of the stem, and a presser-head actuated by the lever-nut, substantially as described.

2. In a corned-beef press, the combination of a box having joined side walls and bottom and open at the top with a depression in the bottom having a perforation therethrough, a lifter formed to enter the depression in the bottom of the box, a stem carrying the lifter and passing through the perforation and having an exterior screw thread at both its upper and lower ends, a wing clampingnut adapted to engage the lower end of the stem, a lever having a nut adapted to engage the upper end of the stem, and a presserhead actuated by the advance of the levernut on the stem to compress the meat in the box, substantially as described.

3. In a corned-beef press, the combination of a box having side walls and a bottom having at its center a perforation and o en at the top, a lifter adapted to be entere into the box and rest on the bottom thereof, a central stem carrying the lifter and extending above the box and through the perforation of the bottom of the box, a clamp for the lower end of the stem, a lever-nut for the upper end of the stem, and a presser-head actuated by the lever-nutv to compress the meat between it and the bottom of the box and above the lifter, substantially as described.

4. In a corned-beef press, the combination of a box having side walls and a bottom provided with a perforation and open at the top, a lifter adapted to be entered into the box and rest on the bottom thereof, a central stem carrying the lifter and extending above the box and through the perforation in the bottom of the box and having an exterior screwthread on each end thereof, a winged clampnut adapted to engage the screw-thread of the lower end of the stem, a lever having a nut adapted to engage the screw-thread of the upper end of the stem, and a presser-head actuated by the lever-nut to com ress the meat between it and the bottom o the box and the lifter, substantially as described.

REYNOLDS C. HIEBER.

Witnesses:

OsoAR W. BOND, PAULINE BECKMAN.

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